Chronology 1800-1849
1800 The Territory of Indiana, which includes the Illinois Territory, is created by Act of Congress. (Morrison, op.cit., V. 1, p. 143).
1803 (November 11) The Corps of Discovery, led by Captains Lewis and Clark, arrive at Ft. Massac, Illinois Territory. Ft. Massac is located on the Illinois side of the Ohio River approximately 35 miles from the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. George Drouillard, a noted fur trapper and woodsman, is added to the team. (Lewis & Clark, Voyage of Discovery, Stephen Ambrose, National Geographic Society, 1998, p. 42).
November 28 The Corps of Discovery reaches Kaskaskia and encamps at the Army post located there. (Ambrose, op.cit., p. 43).
ca. December 4 The Corps of Discovery establishes its first winter camp on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River at the mouth of Wood River, across from the mouth of the Missouri River. (Ambrose, op.cit., p. 43 / Undaunted Courage, Stephen Ambrose, Touchstone Books, Simon & Schuster, New York, N.Y., 1996).
The Potawatomi, Sauk, Fox and Kickapoo Indians are listed by the U.S. Indian Agency as living in the area of the Chicago portage. (Andreas, op.cit. p. 86).
The schooner Tracy arrives at the port of Chicago heralding its beginning as a Great Lakes port. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 164).
Captain John Whistler, United States Army, was ordered with his company to build a fort at the Chicago portage. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 72 / Morrison, op.cit., V. 1, p. 143).
Fort Dearborn is established by elements of the United States Army. (A Chronology of Illinois History, Ellen M. Whitney, Compiler, Greenwood Publishing Group, Westport, CT, reprint, 1999, p. 4).
1804 (March 9) The Louisiana Territory is transferred to American sovereignty at St. Louis. (Ambrose, Undaunted Courage, op.cit., p.129)
May 14 The Corps of Discovery leaves its Wood River encampment and crosses over into the Louisiana Purchase territory on its way west. (Ambrose, op.cit., p. 46).
Indian villages are located within Niles Township. (Chicago's Highways, Old and new, from Indian trail to motor road. Milo M. Quaife, D.F. Keller & Co., Chicago, 1923, map at pp. 236-37. / Reeling, op.cit., p. 55).
1809 The Illinois Territory is established by Act of Congress. Kaskaskia is designated the capital and Ninian Edwards is appointed Governor. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 4 / Bennett, op.cit., p. 11 / Morrison, op.cit., p. 143).
1812 (August 15) The Fort Dearborn massacre retards development of the area. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 74 / Bennett, op.cit., p. 7 / Morrison, op.cit., p. 143).
"Skokey Marsh" first appears on General William F. Hull's map dated 1812. (Indian Place Names in Illinois, Virgil J. Vogel, Illinois State Historical Society, Pamphlet Series, No. 4, Springfield, 1963, p. 140).
The population of the Potawatomi Indian tribe reaches approximately 12,000. (Clifton, op.cit., p. 34). They massacre 52 troops and civilians at Fort Dearborn. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 5).
1813 (October 5) Potawatomi forces under the leadership of Tecumseh, a Shawnee chief, are defeated by United States forces at Moraviantown, Ontario, Canada. The western tribes are no longer able to resist American expansion westward. (Clifton, op.cit., p. 58).
Potawatomi tribal lands extend from the Detroit / Lake St. Clair area on the east to the eastern shore of the Mississippi River on the west, to Door County, Wisconsin on the north. (See Map, Clifton, op.cit., p. 58).
1816 By the Treaty of St. Louis, the Potawatomi, Ottawa and Chippewa Indians cede land to the United States, including portions of what will become Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p.83 / Illinois in 1818. Solon Justice Buck, Contained in the "Centennial History of Illinois" published by the Illinois Centennial Commission in 1920, p. 385 / Setting down the Record: A History of Skokie, Bertha Rosche, 1949, p. 2).6
The United States government rebuilds Fort Dearborn and re-establishes the United States Factory so that fur trading is again feasible in the Chicago area. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 92 / Bennett, op.cit., p. 8 / Morrison, op.cit., p. 143).
1818 Illinois is admitted to the Union as the 21st state. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 5 / Bennett, op.cit., p. 11 / Illinois 68, op.cit., p. 22 / Morrison, op.cit., p. 143).
The Potawatomi, the predominant tribe of the northern Chicago area, including Niles Township, number approximately 4,800 in the state. (Buck, op.cit., 1917-20, pp. 2-3).
The first steamboat, Walk-in-the-Water, sails the Great Lakes, bringing mechanization to Great Lakes trade. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 164 / Howard, op.cit., p. 105).
1821 The Indians cede to the United States a great part of what are now the northern suburbs of Chicago. (Beckwith, op.cit., pp. 163, 175 / Illinois; a Descriptive and Historical Guide, 1974, p. 179 / Rosche, op.cit., p. 2)
1825 Saugenash a/k/a Billy Caldwell is appointed a Justice of the Peace in Chicago. (Edmunds, op.cit., p. 228).
1829 Treaty of Prairie du Chien is signed. Potawatomi leaders Shabbona, Saugenash and Chechepinqua receive allotments of land. Saugenash, a/k/a Billy Caldwell, the son of an English father and Potawatomi mother*, receives 2 1/2 sections of land or 1,600 acres located in the S1/2 of Sections 31, 32 and 33 in Niles Township. Victoire Pothier receives 1/2 section of land above that received by Caldwell; Jane Miranda receives 1/4 section of land above that received by Pothier. (Historic Illinois from the Air, David Buisseret, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1990, pp. 24-5, 120-21; See Map, p. 121 / Indian Affairs. Laws and Treaties, Charles J. Kappler (ed.), GPO, 1903 v. 2, pp. 213-15 / Andreas, op.cit., p. 109 / Bushnell, op.cit., p. 10 / Vogel, op.cit., pp. 16, 17).
1830 (March) Abraham Lincoln, accompanied by his Father, stepmother and siblings, arrives in Illinois for the first time. (Whitney, op.cit., 6).
Congress enacts the Removal Bill requiring that all Indian tribes east of the Mississippi relocate west of the Mississippi. (Morris, op.cit., p. 426).
1831 (Spring) Joseph Curtis7 erects a log house near the north branch of the Chicago River in the NW1/4 of Section 17 of Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470 / Niles Township, E. Palma Beaudette, 1916, p. 66 / Life (Skokie), sec. 3, January 17, 1963, pp. 24, 46, 67 / Rosche, op.cit., ch. 2).
January 15 Cook County is organized and named for Daniel P. Cook. (Counties of Illinois, 1982, p. 60 / Morrison, op.cit., V. 1, p. 145 / Perrin, op.cit., p. 134).
1832 (Spring) John Dewes settles in the SW1/4 of Section 8 in Niles Township. The west fork of the north branch of the Chicago River runs through his property. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
The Black War ends with Sauk and Fox Indians leaving Illinois. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 6).
1833 (March 3) The City of Chicago is incorporated. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 128 / Morrison, op.cit., V. 1, p. 145 / Pooley, op.cit., 1908, p. 478).
September 26 Treaty of Chicago is signed by the Potawatomi of Southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois assuring their relocation to reservations west of the Mississippi River in Iowa, Missouri and Kansas. The Fourth Migration. The Potawatomi presence in Niles Township, except for those of mixed European and Potawatomi blood, ends. (Clifton, op.cit., p. 66 / See Map, p. 67 / Andreas, op.cit., pp. 123-128 / Federal Writers' Project, Illinois, Illinois, A Descriptive and Historical Guide, 1947, p. 21 / Life (Skokie), sec. 3, January 17, 1963, p. 73 / Morrison, op.cit., p. 145 / Pooley, op.cit., p. 391). Schedule A of said Treaty recites the identities of certain individuals who are to receive cash compensation in lieu of "reservations"; among them are:
- Victoire Porthier and her children - $700.00
- Jane Miranda - $200.00
- Billy Caldwell's children - $600.00
- Billy Caldwell - $5,000.00
Schedule B of said Treaty recites that Joseph Curtis is to receive $50.00 in satisfaction of his claim against the Potawatomi tribe which the tribe admitted to be due. (Kappler, op.cit., v. 2, pp. 296-303).
Thomas Jefferson, Sr. locates his homestead in the S1/2 of the NW1/4 of Section 17 in Niles Township. The north branch of the Chicago River runs through his property. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
William Clark erects a log house near the north branch of the Chicago River in the N1/2 of Section 30 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
The United States Congress grants the first appropriations to begin significant improvements to Chicago's harbor; improved facilities will enable Chicago to become the focus of the settlement of northeastern Illinois. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 160).
1834 John Jackson Ruland lands on lakeshore near Evanston, moves inland and settles on the border between the southern halves of Sections 29 and 30 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470 / David Buisseret, Skokie, A Community History Using Old Maps, Skokie Historical Society, Skokie, IL., 1985 / Life (Skokie), sec. 3, January 17, 1963, p. 46 / Rosche, op.cit., ch. 2 / Villager, May 22, 1958, p. 20).
John Miller erects a sawmill at the north branch of the Chicago River near its intersection with present-day Lincoln Avenue, Morton Grove, in the SE1/4 of Section 18 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470 / Beaudette, op.cit., p. 68).
Christian Ebbinger and spouse settle on lands located in the SW 1/4 of Section 29 and N1/2 of Section 31 in Niles Township and on property located in the Billy Caldwell preserve. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470). The beginnings of the settlement known as Dutchman's Point.
Christian Ebbinger's brother, John Ebbinger, locates on property south of Christian. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
Christian & John Ebbinger's brother, Frederick Ebbinger, locates on property south of John. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
John Plank marries Miss Elizabeth Ebbinger and they settle on property north of Christian Ebbinger in Section 31 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
John Odel settles on land located in the SW1/4 of Section 30 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
Elan Crane settles on land located in the S1/2 of Section 18 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
1835 (September) The Potawatomi Indians, under the leadership of Billy Caldwell, leave Chicago for the last time; they begin their trek west to the Platte country of northwest Missouri, Iowa and the Oklahoma territory. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 128 / Edmunds, op.cit., p. 250).
United States land office begins operations to serve the Chicago area, enabling squatters to claim legal title to land. (Morrison, op.cit., map. 70) Land in Niles Township cost $1.25 an acre. (Early Skokie, League of Women Voters of Skokie-Lincolnwood, 1976).
1836 James Wheldon settles on land located in the SE1/4 of Section 19 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
George Heslington settles on land located in the W1/2 of Section 7 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
Mail is delivered to Dutchman's Point. (Bushnell, op.cit., pp. 18, 20).
Work starts on the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, the first railroad chartered out of Chicago. It is a forerunner of all the lines which are to make the Chicago area a major rail terminus. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 167).
The Illinois and Michigan Canal project is begun. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 6).
1837 Benjamin Emerson settles on land located in the NE1/4 of Section 14 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
Mr. Bartlette and his Indian wife settle on land located in the NW1/4 of Section 35 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 470).
The North Branch Hotel was built in what is now Niles by Benjamin Hall and John Marshall. (History of Niles, Illinois, Dorothy C. Tyse, Niles, IL., 1974, p. 10 / Villager, June 5, 1958, p. 16).
Abraham Lincoln moves to Springfield, Illinois from New Salem. (Encyclopedia Brittanica, Multimedia Edition, 1999).
1838 The first school is built in the SW1/4 of Section 30 in Niles Township near the present intersection of Harlem and Touhy avenues. Four children from the Ebbinger and Ruland families are taught by a Scotsman named Ballantine. (Life, January 17, 1963, Section 3, p. 16 / Villager, June 5, 1968, p. 16).
1839 John O'Brien erects a log cabin on the property located on the NE corner of present-day Oakton Street and Niles Avenue. This property was subsequently owned by Peter Blameuser II. The pond on this property supplied the water which doused the fire of 1910. It was this fire which consumed several buildings north of present-day Oakton Street on the west side of Lincoln Avenue. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 471 / Richard Whittingham, Skokie, A Centennial History, Village of Skokie, Skokie, IL., 1988, p. 19 / Beaudette, op.cit., p. 68, 132 / Life, Skokie, Section 3, Jan. 17, 1963, pp. 59, 73*).
Springfield becomes the capital of Illinois. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 6).
1840 Jacob Comstock settles on property located in the N1/2 of Section 15 in Niles Township. This property was subsequently owned by the Abbink family. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 471).
Stephen Gage settles on property located in the N1/2 of Section 7 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 471.)
The first tavern is built in Dutchman's Point by Benjamin Hall and John Marshall. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 471).
1843 Jacob Kercher settles on property located in Section 14 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op. cit., p. 471).
Sylvester Beckwith settles on property located in the NE1/4 of Section 18 in Niles Township. (Andreas, op. cit., p. 471).
November 26 The Catholic Diocese of Chicago is established. (St. Peter Catholic Church, David Buisseret, Rosemary Schmitt, Richard J. Witry, 1994, p. 84). 8
1845 Wolfgang Harrer and his two sons, Michael & Henry, settle on property located "on the east prairie near the edge of the forest." (Andreas, op.cit., p. 471).
1846 Chicago was made an official port of entry for the United States. (Morrison, op.cit., p. 147).
ca. 1847 A log cabin is constructed just northwest of the intersection of Lincoln and Gross Point Road, which is believed to be the original home of Nicholas and Elizabeth Meyer, early Niles Township settlers. (Beaudette, op.cit., p. 132 / Rosche, op.cit., ch. 2 / League of Women Voters of Skokie-Lincolnwood, op.cit., p.1 / Life (Skokie), sec. 3, January 17, 1963, pp. 53, 59 / "Characteristics of Housing", Skokie, Illinois. Department of Community Development. Planning Section, 1964, p. 1).
The Chicago Tribune is founded by Joseph Medill. (Whitney, op.cit., p. 7).
1848 Ernst Galitz arrives from Pomerania and George Gabel arrives from Wittenberg, Germany. (Undated Newspaper articles, Archives, Skokie Historical Society).
The first boat passes through the Illinois and Michigan Canal as the Canal is formally opened, greatly enlarging the markets for Chicago area producers. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 153 / Morrison, op.cit., p. 147).
1849 Samuel Meyer9 , storekeeper and Village trustee for many years, was born to Nicholas Meyer in the cabin located in Section 21 in what was to become Niles Center. (Andreas, op.cit., p. 477 / Life (Skokie), sec. 3, January 17, 1963, p. 55 / Villager, June 5, 1958, p. 16).
The second school in Niles Township, located at Milwaukee and Harlem, was built by John Ketchum for $25.00 using donated land and materials. (Life (Skokie), sec. 3, January 17, 1963, p. 55 / Villager, June 5, 1958, p. 16)
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